Wireless capsule endoscope and power supply control method thereof

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a wireless capsule endoscope and a power supply control method thereof. The method includes controlling the power supply of the capsule endoscope wirelessly and automatically adjusting power consumption of the power supply in the capsule endoscope. The wireless capsule endoscope includes a capsule casing, a light generator arranged at outside of the capsule casing, an opto-electronic switching starter arranged in the capsule casing, a power supply, a control module, a posture sensor, an illumination unit, an image processing device and a radio frequency transmission unit. The power supply being driven by the light generator in the present invention can effectively solve the incompatible problem between a traditional magnetic switch and a magnetic control device. Meanwhile, the control module and the posture detector enable the power supply to be in different working status under different states, which can prolong the service life of the power supply of the capsule endoscope.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a wireless capsule endoscope and powersupply control method thereof, and more particularly to a wirelesscapsule endoscope which can efficiently and flexibly photograph theinterior of a digestive tract and power supply control method thereof.

2. Description of Related Art

As an effective medical device for diagnosing gastrointestinal diseases,capsule endoscope is recognized in the international medical field andboomingly develops. The capsule endoscope includes a capsule casing, acamera and an illumination unit composed of LED and a wirelesscommunication unit etc installed in the capsule casing. The capsuleendoscope can capture images of the interior of a stomach or intestinevia swallowed by a subject, and transmit the images to an external imagedisplay device by the wireless communication unit. Then the doctor candiagnose gastrointestinal diseases according to the image information.

In order to use the capsule endoscope more efficiently and flexibly in acontrolled fashion, many foreign researchers have designed a kind ofcapsule endoscope driven initiatively to replace the traditional capsuleendoscope driven by peristalsis of the digestive tract. PCT patentpublication No. 01/35813 discloses a capsule endoscope, which iscontrolled by driving the constituent components thereof The capsuleendoscope has a reed switch provided inside the capsule casing thereof.Said reed switch keeps off in a certain given magnetic field and is onwhen the intensity of the magnetic field is declined. Therefore thepower supply of the constituent components in the capsule endoscope canbe controlled by the magnetic field. But under this model, the othermagnetic components installed in the capsule casing would be interfered.Meanwhile, it takes some time that the capsule endoscope is taken outfrom a package and swallowed by the subject and the constituentcomponents are started in said some time that will waste much electricalpower of the power supply. Because the electrical power of the powersupply is limited, the waste of the electrical power will influence thediagnosis. Besides, because of the influence of the magnetic field, itis difficult to solve the waste problem of the electrical power for thecapsule endoscope with many magnetic components.

RFID switch, which can drive the internal power supply by external startcommand can solve the above problems. But the RFID switch needs a bigreceiving antenna to cooperate, which is difficult to accomplish for thecapsule endoscope with limited internal space.

It is desirable to provide an improved wireless capsule endoscope andpower supply control method thereof to solve above problems.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure includes a wireless capsule endoscope comprisingan illumination unit, an image processing unit; a radio frequencytransmission unit and a power supply; wherein further comprises anopto-electronic switching starter, a control module, a posture sensorand an external light generator, the opto-electronic switching starterand the illumination unit being mounted on an annual illuminationcircuit board with through holes, the power supply being arrangedbetween the image processing unit and the radio frequency transmissionunit, and the control module and the posture sensor being disposedbetween the power supply and the radio frequency transmission unit.

Further, the power supply is composed of silver oxide batteries and apower control board.

Further, the control module performs to process information, and has acircuit module having chip resistors and chip capacitors for controllingvoltage.

Further, the posture sensor is a gravity sensor.

Further, the light generator is composed of photodiodes.

In another aspect, the present disclosure includes a power supplycontrol method of a wireless capsule endoscope, comprising: externallyand wirelessly controlling the power supply of the capsule endoscope andautomatically adjusting power consumption of the power supply in thecapsule endoscope; and wherein when the power supply is needed to beturned on, an external light generator generates certain intensity lightbeam which shining on an opto-electronic switching starter provided atinterior of the capsule endoscope, and the opto-electronic switchingstarter convents the light signals to electrical signals to generate anopening pulse which make the power supply contact with the otherconstitution components of the capsule endoscope, then the constitutioncomponents of the capsule endoscope being in low power status; when thecapsule endoscope with the power supply turned on is located in a bodycavity, according to the posture information detected by a posturesensor, a control module provided at interior of the capsule endoscopeadjusts the power supply to keep on the low power status in an invalidstate and output electrical power in a valid state.

Further, the wavelengths of the light beam is 780 nm to 880 nm.

Further, the low power status means that the capsule endoscope does notphotograph and transmit image information, and the valid state meansthat the position of the capsule endoscope is changing and the imagespicked up is unduplicated, and the invalid state means that the capsuleendoscope is not located at afflicted part of the body cavity or hasbeen completed to photograph and transmit image information.

The wireless capsule endoscope and power supply control method thereofin the present invention solves the incompatible problem of thetraditional capsule endoscope with magnetic switch and a magnetic drivendevice, and is driven via turning on an internal opto-electronicswitching starter by an external light generator. When the capsuleendoscope is located in a body cavity, the power supply and the controlmodule can adjust the working status of constituent components of thecapsule endoscope, which can prolong the service life of the powersupply and further improves the inflexibility and efficiency of thecapsule endoscope.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The components in the drawing are not necessarily drawn to scale, theemphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principlesof the described embodiments. In the drawings, reference numeralsdesignate corresponding parts throughout various views, and all theviews are schematic.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional configuration diagram schematicallyillustrating an internal configuration of a capsule endoscope of thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the capsule endoscope;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram for showing that the power supply of thecapsule endoscope is controlled by an external light generator;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram for showing working status of the powersupply in different states;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the power supply control method of the capsuleendoscope.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENT

Reference will now be made to the drawing figures to describe theembodiments of the present disclosure in detail. In the followingdescription, the same drawing reference numerals are used for the sameelements in different drawings.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 5, the configuration of a wireless capsuleendoscope of the present invention is described firstly. The wirelesscapsule endoscope includes a capsule casing 1, an illumination unit 2used for illuminating the interior of the digestive tract of a subject,an image processing unit 3 for picking up images of a region illuminatedby the illumination unit 2 and processing the image information, a radiofrequency transmission unit 7 transmitting the image information tooutside wirelessly, magnetic dipole 5, a posture sensor 6 b, a powersupply 4 supplying electrical power to above constituent components ofthe capsule endoscope, a control module 6 controlling working status ofabove constituent components, and an external light generator 8. Thecapsule casing 1 is composed of a capsule-shaped body 1 b and ahemispherical optical cover 1 a. The optical cover 1 a is transparentand performs with high light transmission. The illumination unit 2 isarranged close to the optical cover 1 a for efficiently illuminating theinterior of the digestive tract. The image processing unit 3 has anoptical lens 3 a. The posture sensor 6 b is a gravity sensor. The radiofrequency transmission unit 7 includes a radio frequency circuit board 7a and an antenna 7 b.

Combined with the configuration, the working principle of the capsuleendoscope is described in this paragraph. The light generator 8 cangenerate certain intensity light beam in a controlled fashion. Theillumination unit 2 has an illumination circuit board 2 c, a number ofillumination components 2 a installed on the illumination circuit board2 c. The illumination components 2 a are LED. The capsule endoscopefurther includes an opto-electronic switching starter 2 b installed onthe illumination circuit board 2 c. The opto-electronic switchingstarter 2 b is formed with a FET (Field Effect Transistor) 9 b and anelectronic switch 9 a connected with the FET 9 b. When the light beamgenerated by the light generator 8 passes through the optical cover 1 ato shine on the opto-electronic switching starter 2 b, the electronicswitch 9 a will be turned on, that is, the opto-electronic switchingstarter 2 b converts light signals to electrical signals for generatingan opening pulse 2 e which make the power supply connect with theconstituent components of the capsule endoscope, such as illuminationunit 2, image processing unit 3, power supply 4, radio frequencytransmission unit 7 and magnetic dipole 5.

In order to distinguish spectral bands between the illuminationcomponents 2 a of illumination unit 2, the light generator 8 andopto-electronic switching starter 2 b, the light generator 8 and theopto-electronic switching starter 2 b in the present invention arecomposed of photodiodes device which have wavelengths between 780 nm to880 nm for realizing the convention between the light signals andelectrical signals, which can avoid the confliction between the lightused to illuminate a viewing region of the optical lens 3 a and thelight generator 8 and the opto-electronic switching starter 2 b.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, like the illumination unit 2, in orderto receive certain light beam from the external light generator 8, theopto-electronic switching starter 2 b is arranged at a position whichhas high light transmission in optical characteristic, thereby theposition is arranged on the illumination circuit board 2 c which isarranged close to the optical cover 1 a in the embodiment. Theillumination circuit board 2 c is annular for disposing the imageprocessing unit 3 at the middle position thereof. The annularillumination circuit board 2 c defines a plurality of through holes, theopto-electronic switching starter 2 b and the illumination components 2a are mounted in the through holes around the image processing unit 3.

The starting control process of the constituent components of thecapsule endoscope is accomplished after the electronic switch 9 a of theopto-electronic switching starter 2 b is turned on, and the powercontrol is accomplished by the power supply 4. The power supply 4 islocated between the image processing unit 3 and the magnetic dipole 5,and includes a power control board 4 b and one or plural batteries 4 awith required power mounted on the power control board 4 b. The powercontrol board 4 b electrically connects with other constituentcomponents of the capsule endoscope for supplying electrical power tothem. The batteries 4 a are two button-type silver oxide batteries inthe embodiment.

The power supply 4 enables the capsule endoscope to pick up images ofthe digestive tract and transmit data in a valid state, and let theother constituent components of the capsule endoscope keep on a lowpower status in an invalid state. The low power status means that thecapsule endoscope does not photograph and transmit the imageinformation. The valid state means that the position of the capsuleendoscope is changing and the images picked up is unduplicated, and theinvalid state means that the capsule endoscope is not located at anafflicted region of the body cavity or has been completed to photographand transmit the image information.

The control module 6 performs to process information, and includes acalibration unit 6 d for analyzing and calibrating the characteristic ofthe posture sensor 6 b, a data processing unit 6 c and a feedback unit 6e. When the power supply 4 receives an opening pulse generated by theelectronic switch 9 a of the opto-electronic switching starter 2 b, thepower supply 4 contacts with the other constituent components to supplyelectrical power by the batteries 4 a thereof. Then the calibration unit6 d analyzes the characteristic of the posture sensor 6 b, and the dataprocessing unit 6 c processes the information in real time. When thecapsule endoscope is analyzed in the invalid state, such as in themouth, the feedback unit 6 e informs the power supply 4 to work in thelow power status, which can efficiently reduce the power consumption.When the capsule endoscope is analyzed in the valid state, the powersupply 4 is informed to supply electrical power normally. As detailillustrated in FIG. 4, the square signal is continued clock signal, andin the coordinate, “I” means signal level. When the I is 1, the powersupply 4 supplies electrical power, and when the I is 0, the powersupply 4 does not supply the electrical power. The duration of the lowpower consumption and the valid state is computed by locationarithmetic. Therefore, in a premise which the normal photograph anddisease checking is not influenced, the power supply 4 can supplyelectrical power while the other constituent components of the capsuleendoscope need to be drove, and does not supply the electrical powerwhile the other constituent components do not need to be drove. Thecapsule endoscope can be assured to run stably and efficiently, and thepower of the batteries 4 a can be saved and prolongs service lifethereof. The control module 6 further includes a circuit module havingchip resistors and chip capacitors for controlling the voltage.

As described above, by using the opto-electronic switching starter 2 b,the capsule endoscope of the present invention solves the incompatibleproblem of the traditional magnetic switch and a magnetic drive device.Besides, the combination of the opto-electronic switching starter 2 b,the power supply 4, the control module 6 and the posture sensor 6 benable the capsule endoscope to move more flexibly and be smaller, andthe service life of the batteries 4 a is prolonged, all of which canimprove the performance of the capsule endoscope.

Turning on the power supply initiatively in exterior can be realized bythe wireless capsule endoscope and the power control method thereof inthe present invention, which is suitable for the capsule endoscope withmagnetic components and can improve the performance of the capsuleendoscope. Meanwhile, the posture sensor 6 b and the control module 6enable the power supply to be in different working status underdifferent states, which can prolong the service life of the capsuleendoscope with limited electrical power and limited inner space. Therebythe capsule endoscope is very practical.

It is to be understood, however, that even though numerouscharacteristics and advantages of preferred and exemplary embodimentshave been set out in the foregoing description, together with details ofthe structures and functions of the embodiments, the disclosure isillustrative only; and that changes may be made in detail within theprinciples of present disclosure to the full extent indicated by thebroadest general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims areexpressed.

1. A wireless capsule endoscope comprising an illumination unit, animage processing unit; a radio frequency transmission unit and a powersupply; wherein the wireless capsule endoscope further comprises anopto-electronic switching starter, a control module, a posture sensorand an external light generator, the opto-electronic switching starterand the illumination unit being mounted on an annual illuminationcircuit board with through holes, the power supply being arrangedbetween the image processing unit and the radio frequency transmissionunit, and the control module and the posture sensor being disposedbetween the power supply and the radio frequency transmission unit. 2.The wireless capsule endoscope as claimed in claim 1, wherein the powersupply is composed of silver oxide batteries and a power control board.3. The wireless capsule endoscope as claimed in claim 1, wherein thecontrol module performs to process information, and has a circuit modulehaving chip resistors and chip capacitors for controlling voltage. 4.The wireless capsule endoscope as claimed in claim 1, wherein theposture sensor is a gravity sensor.
 5. The wireless capsule endoscope asclaimed in claim 1, wherein the light generator is consisting of atleast one photodiode.
 6. A power supply control method of a wirelesscapsule endoscope comprising: externally and wirelessly controlling thepower supply of the capsule endoscope and automatically adjusting powerconsumption of the power supply in the capsule endoscope; and whereinwhen the power supply is needed to be turned on, an external lightgenerator generates certain intensity light beam which shining on anopto-electronic switching starter provided at interior of the capsuleendoscope, and the opto-electronic switching starter converts the lightsignals to electrical signals to generate an opening pulse which makethe power supply contact with the other constitution components of thecapsule endoscope, then the constituent components of the capsuleendoscope being in low power status; when the capsule endoscope with thepower supply turned on is located in a body cavity, according to theposture information detected by a posture sensor, a control moduleprovided at interior of the capsule endoscope adjusts the power supplyto keep on the low power status in an invalid state and outputelectrical power in a valid state.
 7. The power supply control method asclaimed in claim 6, wherein the wavelength of the light beam is 780 nmto 880 nm.
 8. The power supply control method as claimed in claim 6,wherein the low power status means that the capsule endoscope does notphotograph and transmit image information, and the valid state meansthat the position of the capsule endoscope is changing and the imagespicked up is unduplicated, and the invalid state means that the capsuleendoscope is not located at an afflicted part of the body cavity or hasbeen completed to photograph and transmit image information.